Bernina Express & St Moritz Day Trip from Milan

The Bernina Railway, a UNESCO World Heritage Line

Opened in 1910, the Bernina line of the Rhaetian Railway links Tirano in Italy with St Moritz in Switzerland and, together with the Albula line, was listed by UNESCO in 2008. It is one of the steepest adhesion railways in the world, climbing gradients of up to seven percent without cogs, and its route crosses dozens of bridges and tunnels.

Is the Bernina Express worth it? For many travellers the ride is the highlight of a trip to Italy. Soon after Tirano the train loops around the stone circular viaduct of Brusio, then climbs through forests and meadows to the Bernina Pass at about 2,250 metres, the highest point of the line, where Lago Bianco lies beside the tracks. The train journey takes about two and a half hours.

Alp Grüm and the Palü Glacier

Alp Grüm is a tiny mountain station perched on a slope high above the Val Poschiavo, reachable only by train or on foot. From here the view opens onto the Palü Glacier, a great tongue of ice spilling from Piz Palü, with the green valley and Lake Poschiavo far below.

This is the moment most passengers wait for on a Bernina train day trip, so keep your camera ready on the right side of the carriage when climbing from Tirano. Our guide explains how the line was built and points out the peaks. The best time to see the glacier is on a clear day from late spring to autumn; in winter the landscape turns completely white.

St Moritz, the Legendary Alpine Resort

St Moritz lies at about 1,800 metres in the Engadine valley, beside a lake that freezes solid in winter. It claims to have invented winter tourism in 1864, hosted the Winter Olympics in 1928 and 1948, and is known for its luxury boutiques, grand hotels and the leaning tower of its old church.

During your time here the guide introduces the town before you are free to walk along the lake, browse the shops of Via Serlas or relax in a café with a mountain view. A St Moritz day trip from Milan is a long day, but it combines the train ride with one of the most famous resorts in the Alps in a single journey.

Tirano, the Valtellina and the Maloja Pass

The day begins with a coach ride from Milan past the northern tip of Lake Como and through the Valtellina, a valley of terraced hillsides. In Tirano, the Italian border town where the Bernina line starts, you have some free time around the old centre and the Basilica of the Madonna di Tirano.

After St Moritz the coach returns through the Upper Engadine lakes and down the hairpin bends of the Maloja Pass into Italy, following Lake Como back towards Milan. Because the tour crosses the border twice, a passport or national ID card is required. On some days the itinerary runs in reverse for traffic or weather reasons.